Aromatherapy
by Cybu
Summary: When Klaus meets the new farmer, he learns that she has a terrible sense of smell. As a perfumer, he finds her to be his biggest challenge yet. What he didn't account for are the bigger challenges of that accompany spending too much time with a girl so bright, there's never a cloud in the sky. A story about Minori, a story about Klaus, and a story of both Minori and Klaus.


**_Hello guys! I've really gotten into Story of Seasons, and Klaus makes me really happy hehe. Anyways, thank you for your support, and I'd like you to know that the chapters split into two parts: Minori and Klaus._**

* * *

 _Prologue: The Girl Who Couldn't Smell_

 _Minori_

Even the brightest ray of sunlight could be obscured, if the day was cloudy enough. Minori was known for her chipper and bright personality; a smile that would appear even if she'd lost her cool or temper. Though she may not be steadfast in her temper, her sunny disposition could never stay away for long.

Her family wasn't sure what she was thinking when she suddenly penned an application to give up everything in the city and head over to Oak Tree Town. "It'll be a good change of pace," she'd said with a radiant grin, as though major lifestyle changes were meant to happen at a whim. Her friends and family secretly prayed that she wouldn't be accepted but lo and behold, her whoops were heard barely a week later indicated that their prayers had gone unheard.

"How serendipitous," she'd cheered as she read over the instructions to what she needed to do. "Well, I better start packing!" Grassy plains and rural life was waiting for her yet. They'd all tried to restrain her, even going so far as to tell her that she wouldn't make it; her place was in the city, and she could just settle down and take up a nice hobby. Well, she'd said fiercely, as she slammed her suitcase shut. She'd prove them all wrong!

Or so she thought.

She was covered in mud from head to toe, and had the horrible smell of fertilizer wafting from her boots. The spring air did nothing to help her except have the wind intensify the stink straight up into her boots. She tried to go into town to trade her turnips, and managed to do that much. But so far she'd ended up at Fritz's place (who made her water his plants), Elise's farm, said owner had mistaken her as a servant yet again, due to her frazzled appearance, so Minori had to make her escape again. And then she met with roadblock after roadblock until she gave up and plopped down in the middle of the path. This was it. She wouldn't prove her worth or anything. She'd meet her demise whilst surrounded by terrified rabbits and annoying grasshoppers.

"Are you alright, miss?" A steady, deep voice called to her and she looked up to see just who her savior would be. It was a man with a formal appearance and quite a nice sense of fashion. His hair was a contrast to it, she thought. It seemed to be hopelessly spiky, and she pictured him fighting it for a while until giving in. He prompted her the question again and reached out a hand to her when she realized that she was simply staring at him with a stupid look.

She nodded her head and tried to get up of her own accord. She really didn't want to stink up his hand and make him think that she was some dirty girl, even though that is what she looked like at the moment. Regardless of her efforts, he pulled her up by her hand anyways. "Ah, but I'm such a mess!"

He chuckled and patted her head, taking care to not rumple her red kerchief. "You needn't worry. You must be the new farmer, Minori?"

"Oh you know my name," she said, quite chuffed. Her miseries are mysteriously forgotten, and there's even a little bounce in her feet as she fixes the bag hanging across her body.

"It's a small town," Klaus said. "Naturally word of a new citizen spreads quickly. But what were you doing here? Exploring? To wander is only natural, but to get lost is tragic. So do be careful! This is a mountain trail after all. Sheer wilderness!" he warned her with an almost stern expression, and Minori gulped, as though receiving a scolding from a school teacher. His green eyes were intense, but they lightened at her deer-in-the headlights look.

"Ah, I may have gotten a little carried away. But please, do be careful. Although I take walks here very often, and may come across you, I'd hate to think you sitting here lost like this."

She wouldn't mind getting lost, she thought, if a kind gentleman like him were to be the one to rescue her. But that may come across a little too forward, a notion even an oblivious young woman like her understood. "I'll take care more not to…Erm, you don't happen to know which way my farm is, do you?" Her farm. The words rolled around on her tongue, as though trying to sink in. She wasn't much of a farm owner if she didn't even know how to get back to it. Her disappointment must have shown because he patted her head once more.

"Don't be so hard on yourself. Come, I'll escort you back to your farm." He held out an arm for her to take, and though the girl eagerly moved forward, she stopped herself, just in time.

"But I stink," she said meekly, and the man let out a hearty laugh.

"While I certainly wouldn't infuse that scent into my work, it's not so distasteful that I could be repulsed by you. Truly. And there's the slightest tinge of strawberries I can detect…" he smiled genially, and she held his arm, accepting his friendly gesture.

And that was the first time she smiled for him with all she had. She could see the man redden, and she took a jibe at him. "I can detect some strawberries in your cheeks," she said. The gentleman had nothing to say, other than to usher her back to her farm.

She'd have to thank Eda later for the strawberry pie.

* * *

 _Klaus_

Just as they'd set foot in her farm Eda was there to greet the pair. "Minori! You're back later than you'd said you'd be," she said. "Weren't we going to have tea together?" The grandmotherly woman looked hopeful and Minori giggled. The peal of laughter was so bright Klaus feared that his cheeks would be once more painted with strawberries. He had to admit, he'd thought the girl to be very peculiar upon the moment they met. Wide-eyed and ready to take on everything, even though moments before he'd picked her up off of the ground she'd looked as though she'd resigned herself to a fate on the mountain trail.

Her energy though…it was something that infused him with life. Having her bounce along his side actually put a spring in his step too.

To be truthful…her boots were doing quite a disservice to his nose, especially as it was a nose belonging to a perfumer. But she…she didn't seem to be so affected to it. Surely not, if she was traipsing around town with dung sticking to her shoes. Considering her profession, he accepted it but it still was still a little strange. Lying to her wasn't such a feat…her lovely smile was too hard to wipe out. Distinguishing the strawberry scent was his saving grace.

Of course, the old woman before them would undo all of that in an instant.

"Oh dearie, you must wash up before you come over," Eda said, not unkindly. "You're very, well, stinky."

"Oh no!" Minori said and clutched her nose, an action he thought came a little too late. It was rather endearing though, and he hid a small smile from the women. "My nose doesn't work all that well, you know."

Eda laughed, especially at the scandalized look on Klaus's face. "Well that does explain how the fertilizer doesn't bother you so much. I fear for dear Klaus though, his whole profession relies on your schnozzle."

Minori regarded the man with a tilted head and a curious gaze. "What do you do, Klaus? Oh dear, you've asked me so much about myself I barely know anything about you!"

"Believe me, you'll be hearing enough about my work before long enough," he chuckled, reminiscing about Mistel's many grumbles about how neither Iris nor Klaus shut about their professions. He couldn't help it though; every scent he smelled inspired him so. During a rainy day he quickly retreated to his study, trying to recreate the exact smell, the exact feelings of melancholy he would feel during a light rainfall. Or the unease that would come with a thunderstorm yet would suffuse the scent with a sad sort of beauty. To see a girl before him, nasally-challenged…that was unbearable to him. "I'm a perfumer…Ah, you…you're not completely deprived of a sense of smell, are you?" His heart was already beginning to sink, but her smile eased his worry by a smidgen.

"Of course not! Just most of the time. It's got to be really strong to get to me," she claims proudly, as though it were a desired trait. He felt a pang of pain in his heart, and against his better judgment, he pulled out a new scent he'd recently made from his coat and opened the stopper. "Please, tell me what you can smell."

She scrunched up her nose (he found the motion so adorable that he had to avert his face to hide the inevitable blush) and took a large whiff. Minori nodded for a few moments and then said, "it's nice!"

Klaus let out a sigh of relief. "But…what does it make you feel? Can you make out anything?"

She inhaled it again, nodding sagely and biting her lip. "Watermelons? Makes me want to…keep smelling it?"

His heart dropped past his stomach and to the ground at their feet, probably to join the remains of the damned fertilizer on Minori's boots.

"Peaches," he said weakly. At least…at least she enjoyed the smell? No, this wouldn't do, it wouldn't do at all. He would create something so memorable, so pleasant (because he certainly wouldn't shove something repugnant under her nose) that she would never forget it. He wanted her to look fondly at the bottle and remember the scent for years to come. Though it was only the beginning, he feared that this would be the biggest challenge he would ever have to overcome, but god damn it all, he would do it. For the sake of his pride and that…that pure smile that made him want to donate his life savings to a charity of some sort.

They invited him to Old Eda's place after the brief scent testing was conducted (even the old woman had better results than her, to the young farmer's chagrin; it did bolster the gentleman's ego back to its usual state).

Unfortunately, he would have to turn the invitation down.

He had a lot of work to do.


End file.
